BRAZIL- Cargill Brazil is planning to spend US$20 million to build a mineral supplements production plant in the west-central state of Mato Grosso for cattle raised on pastures, according to a report by Reuters.
According to the cited statement, construction of the facility is expected to begin this month with completion slated for the end of 2024.
Mato Grosso is Brazil’s top soybean and corn producer as well as the home to the country’s largest cattle herd.
This Brazillian facility is the latest investment that Cargill has made in its Animal Nutrition business, and it is bound to help the company increase its presence in an area that is prime for feed production.
The giant commodity trader also recently announced plans to expand its retail feed operations, constructing a production facility in Granger, Washington, US, focused on current and potential agricultural retail locations in the region.
According to Cargill, the facility, expected to start operating in 2024, will initially be capable of producing more than 125,000 tonnes of feed annually, which will be packaged and sold under Cargill’s Nutrena brand and many customers’ brands.
Additionally, Cargill will likely be investing further in its Animal Nutrition operations. In a recent statement, Cargill also said it intends to acquire a facility in Parana state in southern Brazil that produces hog feed.
While the terms of the closed deal were not disclosed, the deal has been submitted for approval by local government regulators.
Cargill to expand RegenConnect program
Meanwhile, Cargill has announced that it is expanding its regenerative agriculture program in Europe, which will see farmers in Germany, Poland, Romania, and France financially compensated to adopt climate-friendly farming practices.
Cargill’s regenerative agriculture program, RegenConnect is a voluntary, market-based program that helps farmers improve soil health and decarbonize the agriculture supply chain.
Cargill RegenConnect also will expand in the United States, introducing the program in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Colorado, Mississippi, Alabama, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Texas.
The program launched two years ago, and will now be available in 24 states. It also will provide US farmers with higher payments, cover more commodities and improve ease and access to enrollment via mobile devices.
“Cargill RegenConnect’s success to date demonstrates how making sustainable, regenerative agriculture financially viable for farmers can help nature-positive production practices scale more quickly and become standard,” said Chantelle Donahue, vice president of the North American agriculture supply chain at Cargill.
“It is one of the many ways we plan to meet our goal to reduce emissions in our supply chain and will impact every area of our business — from sourcing wheat and corn for our starches, and sweeteners to growing rapeseed oil for our salmon feed,” he added.
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